Apatite flotation using pataua palm tree oil as collector

Abstract

Most apatite concentrates, essential for the fertilizer industry, are produced using froth flotation, where collectors play a pivotal role. Although vegetable oil-derived surfactants have been used for decades in flotation processes, raw materials which do not compete with human or animal nutrition deserve special attention. This study investigated the pataua palm tree (Oenocarpus bataua) oil regarding to its fatty acids chemical profile, saponification and iodine values, acidity index, and evaluated its potential as a source for a collector to be employed in phosphate ore flotation. The results indicated that the pataua oil is primarily composed of oleic acid, with minor contents of linoleic, palmitic, lauric, myristic, palmitoleic, stearic and linolenic acids. Selectivity of apatite from quartz and calcite was achieved at neutral and alkaline pH with dosages as low as 0.3 mg.g−1.These findings were interpreted based on FTIR and zeta potential measurements, indicating that the collector adsorption onto the apatite surface occurred through mechanisms of chemisorption and calcium salts precipitation. This study suggested pataua oil as a prospective collector in flotation systems aiming at apatite concentration with an environmentally sustainable strategy.